Adjustable strap for voting machine



March 3, 1959 R. F. sHouP ADJUSTABLE STRAP FOR VOTING MACHINE Filed Sept. 16, 1955 IN V EN TOR.

RANsoM F. BY

FIG. 5

ATTORNEY United States Patent O 2,876,028 ADJUSTABLE 'STRAP FOR VOTING MACHINE Ransom F. Shoup, Bryn Mawr, Pa., Shoup Voting Machine Corporation, a corporation of New York assigner to The New York, N. Y.,

My invention relates to a voting machine of' the type shown in my Patent No. 2,520,740 of August 29, 1950.

My said patent shows an adjustable interlock strap which includes overlapping, relatively slidable members 61a and 61b, with a stud 61e carried by member 61a for engaging one of a number of holes 61j in member 61b to vary the overall length of the interlock strap. The patented construction referred to also includes tongues 61e, carried by member 61a and bent over to form guides in which member 6lb slides. To vary the length of the interlock strap, it is necessary to separate the overlapping members 61a and 6lb far enough to permit stud 61e to be withdrawn from the hole 61f in which it had been previously inserted. Because the interlock strap was made of ordinary metal, its overlapping parts had to be made relatively long so as to avoid permanent deformation of these parts when they are deected or bent far enough to permit withdrawal of stud 61e from hole 61j. This limitation on the size of the overlapping parts imposes a corresponding limitation on the extent to which the interlock strap can be shortened. This, in turn places a limit on the utility of the interlock strap when the voting machine is used for selective, as distinguished from elective, voting, as in the selection of party candidates or in voting for, or against, some particular issue. But, even when overlapping members 61 and 6lb were made relatively long, and even though they were handled with care, they were more or less deformed after a relatively short period of use.

The object of the invention is to produce an improved interlock strap of the type shown in my aforesaid patent.

The nature of this improvement will be understood from the following speciiication, and the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an interlock strap embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is an elevational view looking in the direction of line 2-2 on Fig. 1, showing the parts in their use position.

Fig. 3 is an enlargement of a portion of Fig. 2 better to show details of construction.

Fig. 4 is similar to Fig. 2, but showing` the parts as they appear in the process of adjusting the length of the interlock strap.

Fig. 5 is an enlargement of show details of construction.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged view line 6-6 on Fig. 5.

In order not to cucumber this case unduly, all parts which are common to Patent No. 2,520,740 and to this application are designated with the same reference characters with which they are identified in said patent, and only the improved structure of the adjustment feature of the interlock strap will be described.

According to my invention, the interlock strap includes a body portion 70, one end of which is looped around a portion of Fig. 4 better to looking in the direction of and rotatably engages rod 59h and the other end of which is bent at right angles to form wall 72 and is again bent at right angles to form wall 74. From the sides of this body portion, there extend tabs 76 which are bent over to clamp one end of a spring 78 to body portion 70. The other end of spring 78 is dished as at 80 and carries a pin 82 which is adapted to pass through a hole 83 in body portion 70. Desirably, additional tabs 84 and 86 are bent over the opposite side of body portion 70 to form a guide for slidably receiving one end 90 of the shank of the interlock strap 92.

The other end of the interlock strap 92 is provided with wedge 64, the function of which is set forth in Patent No. 2,520,740. Near its end 90, the interlock strap is provided with a hole 94 which, when the strap is lengthened, registers with hole 83 in body portion 70. Desirably, tab 86 is also provided with a hole 96 which registers with holes 83 and 94.

In operation, when it is desired to shorten the strap so as to disengage wedge 64 from the main interlock 42 of the voting machine, spring 78 is manually moved to the position of Figs. 4 and 5 to disengage pin 82 from holes 83, 94 and 96. This permits movement of the shank of the strap 92 to the left, as viewed in the drawing until its end 90 virtually abuts pin 59b as best shown in Fig. 4. `o lengthen the interlock strap, spring 78 is again moved to the position of Figs. 4 and 5 and the shank of the strap 92 is moved to the right until hole 94 is again in a position to be engaged by pin 82 upon release of spring 78. This position is shown in Fig. 3. From Figs. 4 and 5, it can be seen that wall 74 serves to limit the upward movement of spring 78 so as to prevent it being moved beyond its critical point or beyond the point at which the spring will be permanently deformed. This greatly lengthens the life of the spring.

As best shown in Fig. 3, the lower end of pin 82 is squared instead of being rounded; that shoulder of this pin is large and is spaced from the surfatce of the strap portion 70, and that tab 86 abuts tab 84 as best shown in Fig. 6. These three factors serve to resist any tendency of the pin 82 to pull out of holes 83, 94 and 96 under tension and will thus prevent parting of portions 70 and 92 of the strap.

What I claim is:

An adjustable interlock strap for a voting machine, said strap including a iirst elongated member, one end of which is bent, rst at an angle, and then parallel to said member to form a hook overlying the adjacent end of saidl first member, there being an aperture in said rst member immediately inwardly of said hook, a fiat spring carried by said rst member with one end thereof disposed within said hook, said spring being biased into contact with one side of said iirst member, a guide member carried by and disposed on the other side of said first member, a pin carried by said one end of said spring, there being an opening in said rst member for receiving said pin, said strap further including a second elongated member insertable in said guide and having a hole therein engageable with said pin, the end of said pin passing through said hole being squared to prevent accidental withdrawal of said pin from said hole.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 590,997 Masser Oct. 5, 1897 1,117,416 McKelvy Nov. 17, 1914 1,721,356 Schulz July 16, 1929 1,773,751 Reidhaar Aug. 26, 1930 2,520,740 Shoup Aug. 29, 1950 

